Automatically operable organ



April 18, 1939. 1, VERBEECK AUTOMAT ICALLY OPERABLE ORGAN Filed March 3, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet l SUC TIO/V Fig. 3.

1 /A/VE/VTOA7 L 25 .Ibsen/14565556( A 28 Y April'l8, 1939. J. VERBEECK 2,155,158

UTOMATICALLY OERABLE ORGAN Filed March 5, 1938 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 MMTM A TTNEY April 18, 1939. 1 VERBEECK AUTOMATICALVLY OPERABLE ORGAN Filed March 5, 1938 5 Sheets-Sheet C5 Patented Apr. 18, 1939 PATENT OFFICE AUTOMATICALLY OPERABLE ORGAN Joseph Verbeeck, London, England f Application March 3, 1938, Serial No. 193,776 In Great Britain September 21, 1936 1 Claim.

This invention relates to automatically operable musical instruments capable of being actuated through the instrumentality of a perforated member composed of, paper, cardboard or like 5 sheet material.

The invention consists in an automatically operable accordion or piano-accordion having keys adapted to be actuated through the 'instrumentality of a moving perforated `sheet of'paper,

cardboard or the like characterised in this that the accordion bellows is interconnected with means for producing a suction or negative pressure effect therein and each of the keys of the accordion is provided with means controlled by the said perforated sheet for operating the keys to enable air to pass into the bellows of the accordion.

The accordion may be tted in position on an automatically operable organ and, in such an arrangement, means may be provided for enabling the means for controlling the operation of the accordion to be switched into or out of operation according to requirements.

In order that the said invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into effect, the

same will now be more fully described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. l shows diagrammatically how one of the keys of an accordion may be adapted or adopted for the carrying out of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to that shown in Fig; 1 but showing the position of the key and its associated elements when it is brought into action for sound producing purposes;

435 Figs. 3 and 4 show diagrammatically how the perforated cardboard serves to control the opening and closing of one of the electric switches which may be used for controlling the actuation of the bellow members associated with the keys of the accordion; and

Figs. 5 and 6 show diagrammatically the operation of the suction vand pressure controlling valves which are brought into and out of operation by the said switches.

In adapting or adopting an accordion for the carrying out of the invention, the two relatively movable ends of the accordion are suitably anchoredi in position with the bellows 2 thereof partiallyA extended as is shown,'for example, in

.50 Figs. 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings and the space within the bellows is connected with a suitable source of suction or subatmospheric pressure such as, for example, the inlet side of an .electrically driven air pump or fan. By

h55 reason of the negative pressure effect thus prospring 25 or other suitable means.

duced, each of the sound controlling valve elements 3 will normally be held on its seating as shown in Fig. l. Each of. the aforesaid valve elements is interconnected with one of the keys 4 of the instrument through the medium of one r, of a series of bell-crank levers 6 pivoted at 8 and each key is interconnected with one of a series ofv inflatable members or bellows l0, there being one such bellows for each key and the arrangement being such that, when any of the bellows 10 I0 becomes inflated and expanded by the admission of a pressure medium into the interior of the same, the key 4 and valve element 3 interconnected with the expanded bello-ws will be displaced as indicated in Fig. 2 to uncover the open- 15 ing l2 controlled by that valve element, thus enabling atmospheric air to pass through such opening and to vibrate the reed which is associated therewith. Thus, by suitably and selec-- tively controlling the admission of the pressure 20 medium to the various bellows l0 in a predetermined sequence, any desired succession of sounds can be obtained.

The means for controlling the admission of the air under pressure to the various key bellows Hl 25 comprises an elongated strip I5 or a series of interconnected strips of paper, cardboard or the like formed in known manner with a series of perforations disposed in positions determined by the characteristics of the music to be reproduced, 30 the strip or strips being passed at a predetermined speed between rollers IS and Il as shown in Figs, 3 and 4 and under a further roller I8. Beneath the latter is mounted a series of levers or eelers 20 disposed side by side along the lengthV of the roller, the said feelers being pivoted at 22 and being interconnected at their lower ends one with each of a series of electric switches. Each switch is fitted with a pivotally mounted contact member 24 urged into a closed position by 9.2.54()

The connections` between the contact members 24 and the feelers are so arranged, however, that the upper ends of the feelers are pressed by the springs or the like against the underside of the strip l5 45 and that, so long as the feelers bear against the imperforate portions of the strip, the contacts 24 will be held by the strip and roller I8 away from their cooperating contacts 28. When, however, any one of the feelers encounters a perforation in the strip l5, its upper end will pass therethrough and the contact 24 interconnected with that feeler will be forced against its co-operating contact 28 by the spring or the like as is indicated in Fig. 4, the duration of. the period of closing of the switch being dependent upon the length of the perforation in the direction of movement of the strip.

In each of the electric circuits which are adapted to be opened and closed by the aforesaid switches is arranged an electromagnet 30 which when actuated is adapted to raise a small metal plate or valve 32 disposed beneath an opening 3B which is normally open to permit pressure air to pass therethrough from a wind box 36 and into a chamber 34 provided with an opening 35 leading to the upper side of a diaphragm valve 4|. By the raising of the valve 32, the opening 38 is closed and the air pressure on top of the diaphragm valve 4I is released. The underside of the valve 4I, however, is still in communication with the wind box 36 through the channel or passage 39 and the valve 4I is accordingly raised to uncover the opening 40 and to place the passage 39 into communication with a passageway 4l!av leading to the underside of another valve 55 provided with a flexible diaphragm 56. To the spindle of the valve 4I is secured a second valve 42 which controls an opening 43 to atmosphere which opening is normally open as is shown in Fig. and is adapted to be closed by the valve 42 as the valve 4| is raised into the position shown in Fig. 6. Hence, by the opening of the valve 4| and the closing of the valve 42, the pressure air is caused to pass along the passageway 40a and to act upon the underside of the valve 55.

In addition to the wind box 36, the apparatus is fitted with a wind tunnel 62 provided with a series of valves 52 for opening and closing openings 54 communicating with passages 50, each of the valves 52 being secured to the upper end of a spindle which is interconnected with one of the valves 55. The passages 50 are connected, for example, by a series of flexible tubes 60, with the various key bellows I0 and hence it will be seen that, whenever one of the electromagnets 3B is actuated, one of the valves 42 will be momentarily raised to close the opening to atmosphere and one of the valves 52 will be raised to momentarily open communication between the source of pressure and one of the key bellows, the particular key bellows operated being dependent upon which of the electro-magnets is actuated which is, in turn, dependent upon the particular perforation permitting the closing of the appropriate contacts.

As mentioned above, the suction or negative pressure effect within the bellows of the accordion may be obtained by interconnecting such bellows to the inlet side of a suitable air pump or fan the outletJ from which is utilised for affording a supply of pressure medium for the actuation of the various key bellows l0. The same pump or fan may be utilised for affording the air pressure necessary for the actuation of the valves and, in the preferred form of the invention, therefore, the inlet side of the pump or fan is also coupled with means interconnected with the interior of the bellows 2 and the outlet side of the pump is coupled with the wind tunnels 36 and 62. In arrangements in which the accordion is fitted in position on an automatically operable organ, the passages 50 may be tted with additional outlets 65 and 66 for connection by fiexible tubing or other means with the various sound-producing elements or pipes of the organ and suitable means may be provided for enabling the organ and the accordion to be actuated independently of each other or simultaneously. Also, in such arrangements, the usual form of pressure bellows provided on the organ may be utilised for the supply of the air pressure to the wind boxes 36 and 62 and a separate suction producing device is preferably fitted on the organ and connected with the interior of the bellows of the accordion.

I claim:

An automatically operable accordion comprising two end members anchored in position and interconnected by a bellows having its interior connected with a source of suction, one of said end members being provided with a series of sound controlling valve elements normally held on their seatings by the suction produced, keys connected with said valve elements for opening the latter to admit air to the interior of the bellows, each key being fitted with a pressure actuated bellows for effecting the displacement thereof, a wind passage connected to one of said key operating bellows and communicating through a rst port with the atmosphere, a Wind tunnel communicating through a second port with said wind passage, a valve mechanism adapted to close Ithe first port and open the second port when in one position and to close the first port and vopen the second port when in another position, a diaphragm for operating said valve mechanism, a duct communicating with said diaphragm, a third por-t in said duct communicating with the atmosphere, a fourth port in said duct, a wind box, a conduit placing said wind box in communication with said duct through said fourth port, a second valve mechanism adapted when in one position to open the third port and close the fourth port and when in its other position to open the fourth port and close the third port, a diaphragm for operating said second valve mechanism, a duct communicating with said last-mentioned diaphragm and provided with two ports, one communicating with the wind box and the other communicating with the atmosphere, an electromagnetic valve for closing one of said lastrecited two ports and opening the other, and electric means controlled by a moving perforated member for energizing said electromagnetic valve.

JOSEPH VERBEECK. 

